Thanks for a breath of Spring, Carol. These, according to the trusty PL@ntNet site, are probably Sempervivum montanum L. (Mountain Houseleek). They are fairly common in coastal USA, and prolific here in Europe. Luck us, they are pretty.

You have enhanced the original significantly I think.
Being me, I would probably increase the contrast of the flowers, and make the background a bit less pink, but that's just a bloke's approach.

I love the stamens, they resemble the patterns in a good water-drop shot with the crowns bursting outwards.

Some would say you are breaking the "rule of odds", but what's wrong with a couple? I like it.   Posted: 03/07/2025 03:28:19

Very beautiful! Love the soft colors and the sharp centers of the flowers. Your background fits in so naturally.   Posted: 03/07/2025 06:19:21

I realized I didn't give much info as to the how…I didn't actually do anything to the flowers. I changed out the background for a texture and then painted it back in at different opacities. Then I added my fake stem, and I used the removal tool to remove spider web pieces in 2 sections. Thanks for the positive comments; I can see darkening up that background a bit.   Posted: 03/07/2025 10:04:15

Carol, I really like this piece. It's very calming. I did not notice the floating aspect until you mentioned it. I was so taken in by the beauty of the flowers and the complimenting background. However, I agree that adding the stem is a good move. It grounds the main subject. Excellent work on the background. I particularly like the softness of the pedals in contrast to the sharply focused center of the flowers. I might zoom in on the image just slightly so the eye can linger on those lovely flowers just a bit longer before drifting to the background.   Posted: 03/08/2025 11:01:54

Carol, I really like the texture and the color combination. I also really like the angle of the composition - to me the flowers looked like they were floating - I only noticed the stem after reading your comments. It is fascinating to learn about creating your own backgrounds - thanks for the details. The flowers are so nice that maybe you could crop closer and showcase them even more.   Posted: 03/19/2025 23:29:14

love the spring PINK! the flower looks so nice and overall photo calming/uplifitng. centers look really focused - the one flower is more focused but the other even with a softer focus looks good - signs of a macro photo - and you said handheld!!! little "hairs" are good. you muted the green which I think is good and I am glad you added the pink background - both colors in the flower so great matching bkgd. muted stem looks good but the floating flowers did not bother me in the first place.   Posted: 03/22/2025 17:37:03

Carol,
Please would you reply to this comment? Tom thinks he's fixed the server problem and that notifications should now be working again, and he would like feedback from users.
Thanks,
Stuart   Posted: 03/26/2025 20:04:30